“Mindfulness meditation may relieve chronic inflammation,” I read in the April 2013 issue of APA Monitor.

“According to a study… including people with such inflammatory conditions as rheumatoid arthritis, inflammatory bowel disease and asthma…based on immune and endocrine markers collected before and after the [8-week mindfulness] trainings, the scientists found that the mindfulness-based stress reduction approach was more effective at reducing stress-induced inflammation.”

Makes sense: mind and body are not two; mind and body are two sides of one and the same coin; mind is body, body is mind; so when mind is calm, non-inflamed*, non-rheumatoid**, so is the body.

There is some ironic etymology here. The word rheumatic etymologically stems from the word “flow” or river. Mindfulness training can be defined as a kind of “river-bank attitude”: you sit and watch the river of your mind flow by (from a shore of metacognition). So, restating the findings of this research in metaphorical terms, when you have a habit (routine/practice) of watching your mind flow, your body flows better too.

Same semantic irony with the word “inflammation”: when your mind is on fire, so is your body; when your mind is cool, so is your body.

*Inflame:

mid-14c., “to set on fire with passion,” from Latin inflammare “to set on fire, kindle,” figuratively “to rouse, excite,” from in- “in” (see in- (2)) + flammare “to flame,” from flamma”flame” (see flame (n.)). Literal sense of “to cause to burn” first recorded in English late 14c. (source: etymology.com)

Pavel Somov, Ph.D. is a licensed psychologist in private practice and the author of 7 mindfulness-based self-help books. Several of his books have been translated into Chinese, Dutch & Portuguese. Somov is on the Advisory Board for the Mindfulness Project (London, UK). Somov's book website is www.pavelsomov.com and his practice website is www.drsomov.com

Marla Somova, Ph.D. is a licensed psychologist in private practice and an Assistant Professor of Psychology and Counseling at Carlow University in Pittsburgh, PA. She is the co-author of "Smoke Free Smoke Break" (2011).